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La GoulueFrench dancer
Date of Birth: 13.06.1866
Country:  France |
Content:
- The Rise of La Goulue, the Can-Can Queen
- Breakthrough at the Moulin Rouge
- Association with Renowned Artists
- Financial Ruin and Subsequent Career
- Decline and Remembrance
- Death and Legacy
The Rise of La Goulue, the Can-Can Queen
Early Life and ObsessionsLouise Weber, better known as La Goulue, was born into a Jewish family from Alsace. Her mother ran a laundry in Clichy, where she began working at the tender age of sixteen. However, her heart yearned for something more: dance. Stealthily, she would borrow clients' dresses awaiting laundering and slip away to dance in nearby clubs.
Breakthrough at the Moulin Rouge
La Goulue worked as a flower seller in Parisian passages and performed in small dance halls on the outskirts of Paris. She eventually found her way to the circus and cafes on Montparnasse, including the legendary Closerie des Lilas. In 1889, Charles Zidler invited her to the newly opened Moulin Rouge cabaret. There, she debuted her famous can-can routine, known as the "chahut," with Jules Renaudin, who performed under the stage name "Valentin le Désossé" ("Valentin the Boneless"). La Goulue's habit of emptying patrons' glasses earned her the nickname "the Glutton."
Association with Renowned Artists
La Goulue's fame reached the ears of painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir, who became her mentor and introduced her to the circle of artists and photographers seeking models. Achille Delme commissioned a series of nude photographs of her. She became synonymous with the can-can and the Moulin Rouge, earning the title "Queen of Montmartre." In 1893, she extended her performances to the Olympia concert hall.
Financial Ruin and Subsequent Career
Wealthy and renowned by 1895, La Goulue left the Moulin Rouge. She invested heavily in fairground booths, hoping to capitalize on her fame. However, the public that had flocked to see her at the cabaret had no interest in La Goulue as a showman or animal tamer. The venture failed, leading to her bankruptcy. Until 1907, she continued to perform at fairs, but eventually abandoned her role as a lion tamer after an attack.
Decline and Remembrance
La Goulue faced depression and alcoholism in her later years, frequenting the Moulin Rouge out of nostalgia and giving autographs. She lived in the Pigalle district of Montmartre and briefly appeared in the short documentary film "Zone" by Georges Lacombe. In 1928, she sold nuts, cigarettes, and matches on the streets near the Moulin Rouge, barely recognizable to passersby.
Death and Legacy
Suffering from dropsy, La Goulue died in a Paris hospital on January 30, 1929. In 1990, her remains were transferred to the Montmartre Cemetery with great fanfare by order of Jacques Chirac, the then Mayor of Paris. La Goulue remains an enduring symbol of the can-can and the bohemian spirit of Montmartre.
